Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) has bagged yet another coveted title, but this time it’s not related to shipments of iPhone, iPad or other device. The Cupertino-based company has been given a perfect six-stars in a privacy report concerning the policies of the major tech firms towards the government data requests, according to Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF), a digital rights advocator. What’s even more impressive is that the perfect rating has come after a not so impressive performance over the last three years.
“Apple’s rating is particularly striking because it had lagged behind industry competitors in prior years, earning just one star in 2011, 2012, and 2013,” the EFF writes. “Apple shows remarkable improvement in its commitments to transparency and privacy.”
New guidelines from Apple, also contributed
On Thursday, the report titled “Who Has Your Back” was published by EEF, where Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) won appraisal on all six categories namely requiring warrants for content; informing users about data requests; publishing transparency reports; publishing law enforcement guidelines; fighting for user rights in courts; and fighting for user rights in Congress.
Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) has shown remarkable improvement in not only self-explanatory requirement of warrants for user data, but also in informing users, when such requests from the government has been made. However, Apple may be forced to not reveal details to customers if law enforcement agencies can provide a relevant court order.
Last week, Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) came up with new legal process guidelines for U.S. law enforcement agencies. These guidelines were also taken into consideration in the report by the EEF.
Others in the list
Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) is now a member of the Reform Government Surveillance Coalition, which according to EEF suggests that the iPhone maker does not support mass surveillance. The coalition is of the view that the policies of the government must only target specific data requests that are lawful, and the all requests must be conveyed to the user.
Apart from Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL), other brands who received a full six star rating from the EEF are Dropbox, Facebook, Google, Microsoft, Twitter, and Yahoo.
